A former Florida A&M University band member who pleaded no contest to manslaughter was sentenced Friday to four years in prison in the hazing death of a drum major, The Associated Press reported.
Caleb Jackson, 26, received the sentence for his part in the 2013 hazing of Robert Champion, of Decatur, George. Jackson had faced 35 years in prison, the AP reported.
When he was arrested in the Champion case, a judge found Jackson had violated probation in an unrelated battery case and sentenced him to four years. Jackson will get credit for more than two years of time he's already served.
Champion, 26, died in November 2011 after a band hazing ritual in which he was beaten aboard a school bus after a football game in Orlando, Florida. The initiation required pledges to run down the center of the bus while being punched, kicked and assaulted by senior members, band members have said.
A medical examiner ruled Champion's death a homicide and said he died within an hour of being beaten. Champion suffered multiple blunt trauma blows, the medical examiner said.
A total of 15 defendants were charged originally, but most took plea deals, WFTV reported.
Last October, Dante Martin stood trial and was convicted of the same charges. He was sentenced to 77 months in prison.